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Heart Chakra
Heart Chakras are the things inside people's hearts. A child has a pink one and an adult has a blue one and they stop the humans particles and sparticles to be seperated. The Heart Chakra is what the Indians belive and the repesenting colour is green. The Heart Chakra is our love center; it creates vulnerability, anxiety and dependency but also unconditional love and self love. Ahahata involves heart, soul and body. The Heart Chakra is the center of deep connection and compassion for other people, animals and the environment. Send out love and compassion to strangers and loved ones and opening the soul to receive gifts of emotion. Giving and receiving is limitless, and the green Chakra connects you to that endless universal energy. The Heart Chakra is responsible for all kinds of relationships. |- | History While breath channels (nāḍis) of yogic practices had already been discussed in the classical Upanishads, it was not until the eighth-century Buddhist Hevajra Tantra and Caryāgiti, that hierarchies of chakras were introduced. Etymology The word derives from Proto-Indo-European *''kʷekʷlos'', and its cognates include Greek kuklos, Lithuanian kaklas, Tocharian B kokale and English "wheel," as well as "circle" and "cycle."2 Bhattacharyya's review of Tantric history says that the word chakra is used to mean several different things in the Sanskrit sources: # "Circle," used in a variety of senses, symbolising endless rotation of shakti. # A circle of people. In rituals there are different cakra-sādhanā in which adherents assemble and perform rites. According to the Niruttaratantra, chakras in the sense of assemblies are of 5 types. # The term chakra also is used to denote yantras or mystic diagrams, variously known as trikoṇa-cakra, aṣṭakoṇa-cakra, etc. # Different "nerve plexus within the body. Characteristicsedit The Texts and teachings present different numbers of chakras. Also different physical structures are considered chakras. David Gordon White thus emphasizes: The following features are common: * They form part of the body, along with the breath channels, or nadis, and the winds (vayus). * They are located along the central channel (sushumna/avadhūtī). * Two side channels cross the center channel at the location of the chakras. * They possess a number of 'petals' or 'spokes'. * They are generally associated with a mantra seed-syllable, and often with a variety of colours and deities. Use in religious traditionsedit Hindu Tantraedit Main article: Kundalini energy Thousand Petalled Crown Chakra, Two Petalled Brow Chakra, Sixteen Petalled Throat Chakra (Nepal, 17th Century) David Gordon White traces the modern popularity of the "Hindu" seven chakra system to Arthur Avalon's The Serpent Power, which was Avalon's translation of a late work, the Satcakranirupana.9 In actuality, there are several models and systems present in Hindu tantric literature, as White documents.10 Kundalini is a feature of Hindu chakra systems. Buddhist Tantraedit Vajrayanaedit Main article: Vajrayana Chakras play an important role in the main surviving branch of Indian Vajrayana, Tibetan Buddhism. They play a pivotal role in completion stage practices, where an attempt is made to bring the subtle winds of the body into the central channel, to realise the clear light of bliss and emptiness, and to attain Buddhahood.11 The Vajrayana system states that the central channel (avadhūtī) begins at the point of the third eye like of lord Shiva, curves up to the crown of the head, and then goes straight down to the lower body. There are two side channels, the rasanā and lalanā, which start at their respective nostrils and then travel down to the lower body. The apāna vāyu governs the lower terminations of the three channels. The lower end of the central channel ends in the rectum. The lower end of the lalanā ends in the urinary tract. The lower end of the rasanā channel emits semen.[citation needed] The side channels run parallel to the center channel, except at locations such as the navel, heart, throat and crown (i.e. chakras) where the two side channels twist around the central channel. At the navel, throat and crown, there is a twofold knot caused by each side channel twisting once around the central channel. At the heart wheel there is a sixfold knot, where each side channel twists around three times. An important part of completion stage practice involves loosening and undoing these knots.[citation needed] Within the chakras exist the 'subtle drops'. The white drop exists in the crown, the red drop exists in the navel, and at the heart exists the indestructible red and white drop, which leaves the body at the time of death. In addition, each chakra has a number of 'spokes' or 'petals', which branch off into thousands of subtle channels running to every part of the body, and each contains a Sanskrit syllable.[citation needed] By focusing on a specific chakra (while often holding the breath) the subtle winds enter the central channel. The chakra at which they enter is important in order to realise specific practices. For example, focusing on the subnavel area is important for the practice of tummo, or inner fire. Meditating on the heart chakra is important for realising clear light. Meditating on the throat chakra is important for lucid dreaming and the practices of dream yoga. And meditating on the crown chakra is important for consciousness projection, either to another world, or into another body.[citation needed] A result of energetic imbalance among the chakras is an almost continuous feeling of dissatisfaction. When the heart chakra is agitated, people lose touch with feelings and sensations, and that breeds the sense of dissatisfaction. That leads to looking outside for fulfilment. When people live in their heads, feelings are secondary; they are interpretations of mental images that are fed back to the individual. When awareness is focused on memories of past experiences and mental verbalisations, the energy flow to the head chakra increases and the energy flow to the heart chakra lessens. Without nurturing feelings of the heart a subtle form of anxiety arises which results in the self reaching out for experience. When the throat chakra settles and energy is distributed evenly between the head and the heart chakras, one is able to truly contact one's senses and touch real feelings.12 Bönedit Chakras, according to the Himalayan Bönpo tradition, influence the quality of experience, because movement of vayu cannot be separated from experience. Each of the six major chakras is linked to experiential qualities of one of the six realms of existence.11 A modern teacher, Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche, uses a computer analogy: main chakras are like hard drives. Each hard drive has many files. One of the files is always open in each of the chakras, no matter how "closed" that particular chakra may be. What is displayed by the file shapes experience. The tsa lung practices such as those embodied in Trul Khor lineages open channels so lung (Lung is a Tibetan term cognate with vayu) may move without obstruction. Yogaopens chakras and evokes positive qualities associated with a particular chakra. In the hard drive analogy, the screen is cleared and a file is called up that contains positive, supportive qualities. A seed syllable (Sanskrit bija) is used both as a password that evokes the positive quality and the armour that sustains the quality.11 Tantric practice is said to eventually transform all experience into bliss. The practice aims to liberate from negative conditioning and leads to control over perception and cognition.11 Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche teaches a version of the Six Lokas sadhana which works with the chakra system. Qigongedit Qigong also relies on a similar model of the human body as an energy system, except that it involves the circulation of qi (ki, chi) energy.1314 The Qi energy, equivalent to the Hindu Prana, flows through the energy channels called meridians, equivalent to the nadis, but two other energies are also important: Jing, or primordial essence, and Shen, or spirit energy. In the principle circuit of qi, called the Microcosmic orbit, energy rises up a main meridian along the spine, but also comes back down the front torso. Throughout its cycle it enters various dantians (elixir fields) which act as furnaces, where the types of energy in the body (jing, qi and shen) are progressively refined.15 These dantians play a very similar role to that of chakras. The number of dantians varies depending on the system; the navel dantian is the most well-known (it is called the Hara in Japan), but there is usually a Dantian located at the heart and between the eyebrows.16 The lower dantian at or below the navel transforms essence, or jing, into qi energy. The middle dantian in the middle of the chest transforms qi energy into shen, or spirit, and the higher dantian at the level of the forehead (or at the top of the head), transforms Shen into wuji, infinite space of void.17 Hesychasmedit A completely separate contemplative movement within the Eastern Orthodox church is Hesychasm, a form of Christian meditation. Comparisons have been made between the Hesychastic centres of prayer and the position of the chakras.18 Particular emphasis is placed upon the heart area. However, there is no talk about these centres as having any sort of metaphysical existence. Far more than in any of the cases discussed above, the centres are simply places to focus the concentration during prayer. Western interpretations of Hindu Chakrasedit Recent Western traditions associate colours and physiomotional functions for each of the 7 main Chakras. Western Adaptation of Hindu Yogic Chakrasedit Main article: Esotericism In Western culture, a concept similar to that of prana can be traced back as far as the 18th century's Franz Anton Mesmer, who used "animal magnetism" to treat disease. However it was only in 1927 that the shakta theory of seven main chakras, that has become most popular in the West, was introduced, largely through the translation of two Indian texts: the Sat-Cakra-Nirupana, and the Padaka-Pancaka, by Sir John Woodroffe, alias Arthur Avalon, in a book titled The Serpent Power.19 This book is extremely detailed and complex, and later the ideas were developed into the predominant Western view of the chakras by C. W. Leadbeater in his book The Chakras. Many of the views which directed Leadbeater's understanding of the chakras were influenced by previous theosophist authors, in particular Johann Georg Gichtel, a disciple of Jakob Böhme, and his book Theosophia Practica (1696), in which Gitchtel directly refers to inner force centres, a concept reminiscent of the chakras.20 New Ageedit Main article: New Age According to medical intuitive and author, Caroline Myss, who described chakras in her work Anatomy of the Spirit (1996), "Every thought and experience you've ever had in your life gets filtered through these chakra databases. Each event is recorded into your cells...", in effect your biography becomes your biology.21 The chakras are described[by whom?] as being aligned in an ascending column from the base of the spine to the top of the head. New Age practices often associate each chakra with a certain colour. In various traditions chakras are associated with multiple physiological functions, an aspect ofconsciousness, a classical element, and other distinguishing characteristics. They are visualised as lotuses/flowers with a different number of petals in every chakra. The chakras are thought to vitalise the physical body and to be associated with interactions of a physical, emotional and mental nature. They are considered loci of life energy or prana, also called shakti, qi (Chinese; ki in Japanese), koach-ha-guf22 (Hebrew), bios (Greek) & aether (Greek, English), which is thought to flow among them along pathways called nadis. The function of the chakras is to spin and draw in this energy to keep the spiritual, mental, emotional and physical health of the body in balance. They are said by some to reflect how the unified consciousness of humanity (the immortal human being or the soul), is divided to manage different aspects of earthly life (body/instinct/vital energy/deeper emotions/communication/having an overview of life/contact to God). The chakras are placed at differing levels of spiritual subtlety, with Sahasrara at the top being concerned with pure consciousness, and Muladhara at the bottom being concerned with matter, which is seen simply as condensed, or gross consciousness. In his book on Japa Yoga, Himalaya Press 1978, Swami Sivananda states that a yogi that practices Japa with only the Om and is successful at Mahasamyama {oneness with the object...in this case a Word being meditated on} becomes a direct disciple of that, the OM, the most Holy of all words/syllables { the same as the word of creation as recognised by the Torah, although this is not professed or quite possibly not even recognised by those of secular authority in either Judaism or Christianity} thus the yogi achieving this feat needs no Guru or Sat-guru* to achieve any Spiritual goal {*Archetype / Ascended Master i.e. A Krishna, a Rama, a Jesus, a Nanak a Buddha..et al.} and Swami Sivananda mentions that this yogi has a path that is, in all recognisable ways and manners, reverse of that of other Yogis or Spiritual aspirants and their paths and those include all Christian ascetics, in that this spiritual aspirant then works through the chakras, mastering them from the crown down. Satprem explains in page 67 of his book "Sri Aurobindo or the Adventure of Consciousness"(ISBN 81-85137-60-9), in Sri Aurobindo and the Mother's Integral Yoga the practitioner experiences a "descent" where the Grace and Light works through and enlightens the chakras from top crown chakra downwords. Whereas every other well known path and all major religions[citation needed] start by trying to master the chakras starting with the 'Svadhisthana Chakra' {Sex}, these Yogis aren't expected to renounce sex or certain foods, and by virtue of this they do not need to remove themselves from the world of temptations and become monks or recluses. They can stay in the world of men and live what appears to be a normal life that observes whatever local custom{s} there may be. Trevor Ravenscroft also mentions this spiritual goal and achievement in his book, "The Cup of Destiny", and says that these practices and achievements were known and the most highly regarded and desired by the Templar Knights of old. New Age writers, such as Anodea Judith in her book Wheels of Life, have written about the chakras in great detail, including the reasons for their appearance and functions. Another interpretation of the seven chakras is presented by writer and artist Zachary Selig. In the book Kundalini Awakening, a Gentle Guide to Chakra Activation and Spiritual Growth, he presents a unique codex titled "Relaxatia", a solar Kundalini paradigm that is a codex of the human chakra system and the solar light spectrum, designed to activate Kundalini through his colour-coded chakra paintings.23 Some chakra system models describe one or more Transpersonal chakras above the crown chakra, and an Earth star chakra below the feet. There are also held to be many minor chakras, for example between the major chakras. Chakras are also used in neurolinguistic programming to connect NLP logical levels with spiritual goals on the crown, intellectual on the forehead and so on.24 Rudolf Steiner considered the chakra system to be dynamic and evolving. He suggested that this system has become different for modern people than it was in ancient times, and will in turn be radically different in future times.25 Steiner describes a sequence of development that begins with the upper chakras and moves down, rather than moving in the opposite direction. He gave suggestions on how to develop the chakras through disciplining the thoughts, feelings, and will.26 7 Chakras According to Florin Lowndes,27 a 'spiritual student' can further develop and deepen or elevate thinking consciousness when taking the step from the 'ancient path' of schooling to the 'new path' represented by Steiner's The Philosophy of Freedom.2 Endocrine systemedit The primary importance and level of existence of chakras is posited to be in the psyche. However, there are those who believe that chakras have a physical manifestation as well.28 The author Gary Osborn, for instance, has described the chakras as metaphysicalcounterparts to the endocrine glands,29 while Anodea Judith noted a marked similarity between the positions of the two and the roles described for each.30 Stephen Sturgess also links the lower six chakras to specific nerve plexuses along the spinal cord as well as glands.31 C.W. Leadbeater associated the Ajna chakra with the pineal gland,32 which is a part of the endocrine system. Edgar Cayce said that the seven churches of the Book of Revelation are endocrine glands.33 However, these associations have never been scientifically verified. Spectrum of lightedit A development in Western practices dating back to the 1940s is to associate each one of the seven chakras to a given colour and a corresponding crystal. For example, the chakra in the forehead is associated with the colour purple, so to try and cure a headache a person might apply a purple stone to the forehead. This idea has proven highly popular and has been integrated by all but a few practitioners. Mercier introduces the relation of colour energy to the science of the light spectrum: Descriptionedit David Gordon White traces the modern popularity of the seven chakra system to Arthur Avalon's The Serpent Power, which was Avalon's translation of a late work, the Satcakranirupana.9 Below is a description of the seven chakras, with various associations. Each of these chakras also have its elemental deity (Vasu) - demigod of its material element. Sahasraraedit Ajnaedit Vishuddhiedit Anahataedit Manipuraedit Swadhisthanaedit Muladharaedit Lower chakrasedit There are said to be a series of seven chakras below muladhara going down the leg,49 corresponding the base animal instincts, and to the Hindu underworld patala. They are called atala, vitala, sutala, talatala, rasatala, mahatala and patala. Atalaedit This chakra is located in the hips, it governs fear and lust. Vitalaedit Located in the thighs, it governs anger and resentment. Sutalaedit Located in the knees, it governs jealousy. Talatalaedit Translated as 'under the bottom level', it is located in the calves, and it is a state of prolonged confusion and instinctive willfulness. Rasatalaedit Located in the ankles, it is the centre of selfishness and pure animal nature. Mahatalaedit Located in the feet, this is the dark realm 'without conscience', and inner blindness. Patalaedit Located in the soles of the feet, this is the realm of malice, murder, torture and hatred, and in Hindu mythology it borders on the realm of Naraka, or Hell. Othersedit There are said to be 21 minor chakras which are reflected points of the major chakras.50 These 21 are further grouped into 10 bilateral minor chakras that correspond to the foot, hand, knee, elbow, groin, clavicular, navel, shoulder and ear. The spleen may also be classified as a minor chakra by some authorities despite not having an associated coupled minor chakra. Popular cultureedit * Chakra is featured in the Japanese manga and anime Naruto and Naruto Shippuden as the very lifeblood essence of all life and magic, * In the Ben 10 franchise, "manna" is a fictitious version of chakra. * It is also a key concept in an episode of Avatar: The Last Airbender. * In the video game Digital Devil Saga: Avatar Tuner, the main game locations are named after the main chakras, and are visited in order with Muladhara being the player character's home base. However, Vishudda is never visited (it is mentioned at one point, however). * American hip-hop duo Ces Cru released their fourth studio album "Constant Energy Struggles" in 2013, which included the track "Seven Chakras". There is also a reference to chakras in "Meditate". See alsoedit * |} Category:Items Category:What is the Heart Chakra Category:General wiki templates